'I've seen women do stuff that I didn't even know was possible': Ultra-cyclist Lael Wilcox on the people who inspire her

Round the world record holder shares stories of inspiration from her series of Komoot women’s rallies

Riders on a Komoot women's rally
(Image credit: Komoot)

Despite her 108-day record-breaking trip around the world, Lael Wilcox says some of the most inspiring and memorable experiences she has had on the bike have come on the Komoot women’s rallies she has been a part of over the last four years.

Wilcox says that on the most recent rally in Arizona – which was 394 miles (634km) long – she rode with one woman who was four months pregnant and three who had recently survived cancer.

Life-changing experiences

Riders on a Komoot women's rally

(Image credit: Komoot)

Wilcox explained that she wanted to create a "memorable" experience for women which is more than just your average group ride with your local cycling club on the weekend.

"So many of these other things for women are beginner only, no drop, and it's just so easy that it's almost not memorable," she said. "You have a fun day, but you don't have this wealth of 'remember when that crazy thing happened?' moments and I think right now people are craving that.

"I think that's a big reason for the growth of gravel. People want to go and plan to do something epic and almost scary where they don't even know if they can finish. But whether or not they finish, it doesn't really matter because they have some kind of wild experience. That spirit is such a fundamental part of something like bike packing which I love."

Wilcox believes that the non-competitive element to the events is crucial as it allows riders to get past their own personal hurdles without the added pressure of thinking about what others involved are doing.

She told Cycling Weekly that bringing in a relaxed element to the rides is what she feels helps foster a culture of empowerment and togetherness within the female American cycling community.

"A quarter of the women told me that they wished they could keep doing similar rides all year round," she said. "I could see that they really enjoyed the whole concept of living on the bike and the simplicity of just moving forwards, seeing things and just surviving. It's hard, but there's something so rewarding about that too.

"I feel like every rally I'm learning about a new crazy story like that and also learning all the things that people have overcome to get to that start line. I think we had at least three women that have survived cancer that were at this last rally in Arizona, and I didn't even know until the end because they didn't say anything."

She added: "One of them said it was a big deal for her because she'd felt since she had cancer that she wasn’t capable of certain things anymore. And then doing something like this massive ride with us made her realise that she can still do hard things.

"I guess that's a great reminder that life is hard and things happen, but we can still have goals to work towards when we’ve come out the other side of something."

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Tom Thewlis
News and Features Writer

After previously working in higher education, Tom joined Cycling Weekly in 2022 and hasn't looked back. He's been covering professional cycling ever since; reporting on the ground from some of the sport's biggest races and events, including the Tour de France, Paris-Roubaix and the World Championships. His earliest memory of a bike race is watching the Tour on holiday in the early 2000's in the south of France - he even made it on to the podium in Pau afterwards. His favourite place that cycling has taken him is Montréal in Canada.

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